1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-forming apparatus to form an image based on print data, a print-job control method executed in the image-forming apparatus, and a print-job control program embodied in a computer readable medium and executed in the image-forming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, it has become common to connect image-forming apparatuses such as printers to networks. In this form of use, image-forming apparatuses are used in common by a plurality of users. Here, when a user instructs a computer connected to a network to transmit print data to an image-forming apparatus, and when the image-forming apparatus is located at some distance from the computer, it could be possible that another user reaches the image-formed piece of paper before the user. In order to solve this problem, an image-forming apparatus is equipped with a confidential print function such that when receiving a password along with print data from a computer, the image-forming apparatus does not form an image of the print data until the password is input. With this confidential print function, the user who has instructed a computer to transmit the print data can cause the image-forming apparatus to form an image while being beside the apparatus. This prevents the piece of paper having the formed image from being seen by others. However, for image formation, the user is required to input the password into the image-forming apparatus. For example, in the case of a power saving mode, in which image-forming apparatuses consume low power, the image-forming apparatus does not form an image during the time before transition to the stand-by mode, in which images are formable. Thus, the user has to wait beside the image-forming apparatus in the mean time.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-64715, by the Applicant, describes an image-forming apparatus having an image-forming means to form an image based on print data received from a client terminal connected to the means via a network. The image-forming apparatus further has a detecting means to detect if a mobile terminal corresponding to the client terminal that has transmitted the print data enters a predetermined range, and a control means to control the image-forming means to stand by instead of starting to form an image based on the print data until the mobile terminal is detected to have entered the predetermined range, and to release the stand-by state if the mobile terminal is detected to have entered the predetermined range. However, if the predetermined range is set to be large in order for a shorter waiting time, the following situation, for example, is possible. If the user holding the mobile terminal moves in the predetermined range without intending to fetch a piece of paper output from the image-forming apparatus, the image-forming apparatus automatically forms an image and others might access the output piece of paper. Conversely, if the predetermined range is set to be small in order to prevent mal-operation, the user has to wait for a longer time, thus compromising user convenience.